Are there lightning bugs in South Dakota?

[sadiebug]

We are going to Mt. Rushmore this weekend and I was wondering if there are lightning bugs in that area. My kids have never seen them - and I've only seen them once!

TIA!

Lori

 

[AFfamily]

Sorry, there are no lightning bugs in western South Dakota. I lived there for 3 years and never saw one.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

It is a little early for lightening bugs although I did see one in my backyard last night.

I imagine that they are more southern in hot and moist climates. We have gobs of them in MO starting the end of June.

 

[LuvOrlando]

-

 

[bambii]

and never seen them last summer we were in sioux city iowa and for the first time in my kids life they got to catch them. we live in rapid city ....

 

[Liberty Belle]

How interesting. I didn't realize Lightning Bugs (or Fire Flies, as we call them) weren't nation wide. I've only lived in Michigan, Ohio, and Kentucky, but they've been plentiful in all those places.

 

[powellrj]

How interesting. I didn't realize Lightning Bugs (or Fire Flies, as we call them) weren't nation wide. I've only lived in Michigan, Ohio, and Kentucky, but they've been plentiful in all those places.

I didn't either. I assumed they were everywhere. I have always lived in Indiana and we have always had them, but I do know they aren't as plentiful as they were when I was a kid.

 

[Diva of Dragons]

This is from a page on Ohio Stats website....

If you live in the United States, west of about the middle of Kansas, you are not apt to have the flashing type of fireflies in your area. Although some isolated sightings of luminous fireflies have been reported from time to time from regions of the western U.S., fireflies that glow are typically not found west of Kansas. The reason for this phenomenon is not known.

 

[ozarkmom]

I feel kind of dumb I too assumed we all had lightening bugs/ fireflies.

 

[sadiebug]

Thanks everyone for the replies. I'm sad that we won't get to see any this trip. "See lightning bugs" is on my list of things I want to do with my kids someday, so at least now I know better where we need to go to see them!

 

[ORMom2Four]

I remember seeing them once. We were traveling cross country in a hearse (yep, you read that right!) on a family trip from AZ to Maryland, camping along the way. I was only 4 or 5 years old, and I remember catching them and putting them in jars like it was yesterday.

That was the only time in my life that I have seen lightning bugs.

 

[mrsv98]

We live in the northern burbs of Chicago and should be getting them in a couple of weeks. They last for about a month or so depending on the weather. You definitely need to spend some nights catching fireflies, some of my sweetest memories with DD are the nights we have spent "hunting".

 

[SleepyMom]

We live in Eastern South Dakota and see them all the time in the summer, DD has been catching them the last few years and then releasing them a day or two later.

I grew up in the Black Hills, but it's been so long since I lived there that I cannot remember if I have seen them there or not.

Have fun this weekend!

 

[OK!]

I feel kind of dumb I too assumed we all had lightening bugs/ fireflies.

Same here. I had no idea they weren't everywhere!

 

[Diznotyzed]

My brother-in-law and his wife were amazed at how excited I was by my first ever firefly sighting while visiting them in Vermont. Here I was a grown woman going completely nuts about it! My second sighting was in Costa Rica, and it was nearly as exciting.

 

[legalsea]

We have lots of lightning bugs in Fort Worth. My wife and I were just sitting out on our porch admiring them. I also thought they were everywhere.

 

[laurie31]

Oh wow - every kid ought to get to catch lightening bugs! Good luck finding some eventually!

If you're ever in the Smokey Mountains in June, they have certain places where they blink together. I've never seen this, but DH's parents went last year and said it was very cool!

http://www.lesjones.com/posts/003413.shtml

 

[corie161]

Last year they were quite heavy in Southern MN. The field across from us lit up like crazy with lights. The year before the kids were catching them on a camping trip to Sioux City SD.